Metropolis II
by sasebo-ichiban
Summary: Takes place right after the end of the first Metropolis. A young scientist searches for his master in the city. He meets Rock, who seems strangely related, and finds the remains of Dr. Laughton's creation; Tima.
1. Prologue

After the destruction of the Ziggurat, Kenichi's uncle Shunsaku Ban left for Japan, while Kenichi, FI-FI, and other robots gathered up Tima's body parts and pieces. Elsewhere, a student of Dr. Laughton came to visit the place where his master was supposedly staying at. His name was Taiko Keihama, and he had no knowledge about his master passing away. He had black, spiky hair, and wore a red vest over a black shirt. He also had red sun goggles, green shorts and black boots. Needless to say, he was Dr. Laughton's youngest student at the age of 17. Just minutes after Shunsaku Ban's plane left, he arrived in Metropolis and discovered about his master's death. Hoping to find the killer, he searched around Metropolis. The first place: the rubbles of the Ziggurat. He brought a small bag with him, just in case he found any clues or anything interesting to look at (Being the young scientist he is and all. . .). In the center of the stones, beams, and bars, he found a red notebook; the notebook about Tima that belonged to Dr. Laughton. Satisfied about his find, he decided to take a break, when he found another interesting thing. A human like himself was buried close-by the area where he found Dr. Laughton's notebook. His hair was brown and he was wearing black long-sleeves; it was Rock.  
Taiko knelt down to check his pulse, "He's still alive. . ." He brought Rock to the hotel he was staying at and treated his wounds. After bandaging him, he patiently waited for the survivor to come to, but because he was young, he was impatient, so he decided to look around some more.  
******  
Outside the remains of the old factory Laughton worked in, Kenichi and FI-FI, along with other robots, were connecting sockets together and screwing bolts in. It had already been several hours since the fall of the Ziggurat and they were already making progress in the reconstruction of Tima. They all worked on her until nightfall. Their finished product: a metallic skeleton. "I guess we're done." Kenichi said, getting up and wiping his head. He stared at what was supposed to be a blonde, green-eyed girl and sighed. "But it doesn't look like her. I hope she'll wake up." Everyone waited around Tima's metallic skeleton, but she didn't even show the slightest hint of movement. "I guess we did something wrong." Kenichi said in disappointment and walked away, followed by the other robots. He soon stopped in his tracks after realizing something: he needed Laughton's notebook! Kenichi started sprinting all the way to the remains of the Ziggurat to search for the notebook, followed by his band of robots.  
******  
Back at the remains of the old factory (Where Kenichi and co. were at before they left), Taiko wandered around in search of more clues to his master's murderer.  
"Is this where Dr. Laughton was doing his work?" he explored within the ruins. He found a tank with bullet holes.  
"His killer must have depended on guns a lot." Taiko examined.  
After exploring for about half an hour, he emerged from the old factory. "I'll never find anything at this rate." Taiko sighed. Then something caught his attention. It was a metallic skeleton. "What the. . .?" he rushed to the metallic skeleton, examining it closely and carefully with great interest. "This must be that humanoid that he was working on." he said as he lifted the metallic skeleton and let it hang over his shoulder. "Well, time to get to work."  
******  
Inside the hotel, Rock's eyes twitched and they slowly opened. Where am I? he thought to himself as he slowly sat up. He began to recall what had happened the past several hours.  
"Stop it!" Rock yelled to the crowd of robots. "I won't let pieces of junk like all of you. . .take the life. . .of. . .my father."  
He slowly pushed the Ziggurat's self-destruct button. The last thing he could hear was Duke Red calling out his name, as the explosion knocked him unconscious. Several minutes later, he woke up and found himself surrounded by flames. He could still escape the collapsing building. With much effort, Rock was able to reach the stairs.  
"This. . .this is all her fault!" he thought to himself as he ran down as fast as he could. 10th floor. . .he was almost there. He could feel his whole body sweat as he ran through the flaming stairs. Several times he had to stop and catch his breathe, but it would never be enough because of the smoke. 3rd floor. . .he was sure to make it. Then a loose pillar swung behind Rock, causing him to lose balance and fall out a window. The impact of the fall was on his back. He could feel the pain surge through his body. All that pain wouldn't allow him to stand up, so he had to crawl away. "Thank god it wasn't that high. . .I could've broken my back."  
"Tima! No!" he could hear a boy yell.  
"Tima.yes.that was the name of the robot girl. . .the name of father's real. . .child. . ." Rock knew he could never win Duke Red's heart, but he had to try. It was all because of the fact that Duke Red would never let go of his real child; never except the fact that she was dead. Rock was exhausted. He could no longer crawl.  
"I guess this is it." He said as he slowly closed his eyes. . .  
The door to the room swung open, and Taiko burst inside with all the things he had found. Rock's eyes quickly focused on the metallic skeleton. It's her! he said in his mind, realizing it was Tima. Taiko set Tima's metallic skeleton on a table, grabbed a bunch of tools, opened Dr. Laughton's notebook, and set to work.  
"Who are you?" Rock questioned as he jumped off the bed.  
"Now's not the time for introductions. I need to you boil some of this." Taiko answered, handing Rock a large pot of blob. "Wait, but. . ."  
"BOIL NOW!" Taiko yelled, and Rock immediately went to work. Who am I to be following orders from some crazy scientist? Rock said to himself as he boiled the skin-colored blob.  
Hours passed, and Rock had been following Taiko's every orders. Finally, they were on the finishing touches: the skin. Rock was forced to help Taiko mold Tima's skin back. This guy is good Rock commented quietly. Taiko had managed to cover every single detail.  
"Now. . ." Taiko said, holding a wire. He connected it to a hole behind one of Tima's ears. They could hear the humanoid coming back to life. Tima's eyes slowly opened, and she sat up. Both Taiko and Rock stared at her. Realizing she didn't have any clothes, Taiko quickly ran through his clothes, while Rock was left staring face-to-face with Tima. "You. . ." Tima said quietly. Rock could already notice that she was afraid; afraid of him. "Here you are." Taiko said as he handed Tima her clothes. Strangely enough, they were the same clothes she was given when she met Atlas. The only thing on Tima's mind was "Where's Kenichi?"  
******  
Kenichi and the robots scoured the remains of the Ziggurat. "Why didn't I take the notebook when I had the chance?" Kenichi blamed himself. Night fell on the city of Metropolis, but he wasn't going to give up that easy. The party continued their search.  
******  
The threesome sat in a triangle, back in Taiko's room. "So, let's introduce ourselves." Taiko began, "Let's start with you." he pointed at Tima. She looked frightened. Who wouldn't? She was sitting next by someone who wanted to destroy her.  
"Don't worry. We won't hurt you, right Rock?" Taiko assured her, clueless about Rock and Tima's history together, but Rock nodded in agreement. Besides, he couldn't hurt her because he didn't have a gun, his weapon of choice.  
". . .I'm Tima." she answered quietly.  
"Oh! You're the recreation of Duke Red's deceased daughter, right?" Taiko blurted out while reading his master's notebook. Realizing that he told Tima straight forward that she wasn't human, he immediately became silent. ". . .oh. . .sorry. . ." he replied apologetically, while scratching his head. ". . .so. . .I assume you don't have a family."  
"Kenichi." Taiko immediately stopped his sentence.  
"Kenichi?"  
"Kenichi.he's my father." Tima told them. Rock burst into laughter.  
"How about you?" Taiko asked Rock, in order to stop Tima's embarrassment. "Why are we doing this?!" Rock's laughter had ceased. "Hey! We're trying to get along here! Just calm down! It's not like I'm asking for a million bucks or something!" Taiko shot back.  
"Fine! My name is Rock. There, you happy?" Rock answered getting up. Taiko stood up, "I know you're human, so give us more background." Rock glared at Taiko for a moment. I can't keep this up, especially to someone as annoying as this guy he thought to himself.  
"I'm Duke Red's. . .adopted son. . ." Rock quietly said as he sat back down. Taiko did as well. "well.I'm not really adopted. . .he just took me in after he found me during a war that involved the humans and robots. He told me that my real parents were killed by robots.like her, and it was later reported that my younger brother had died as well." Rock cast a glance at Tima, who scooted closer to Taiko. "Well, that went great!" Taiko said getting up and stretching.  
"Not so fast!" Rock yelled.  
"What about you?"  
******  
It was midnight in Metropolis. Kenichi was getting tired. He didn't want to admit it, but he'll have to search some other time. "Come on FI-FI, let's go back." Kenichi trudged back to the old factory. Is Tima really gone? Kenichi asked himself. No! There's still hope.  
******  
"I used to live here in Metropolis when I was very young. I was there during the time of the Human-Robot War. My parents and my older brother were killed in the war. I was taken into an orphanage. The people there knew I had the potential to be a scientist. On my 15th birthday, Dr. Laughton came. He had supposedly heard about me, and wanted me as his student. I agreed, of course, and was his faithful student for 2 years. Most of our works were done in Japan, but soon, Dr. Laughton had to go to Metropolis. I was left behind." Taiko told Tima and Rock about his past. "Wait!" Rock paused the story, "Was it the robots that killed your family?" Rock eagerly awaited the answer. "Actually, it wasn't the robots. It was Duke Red." 


	2. Long Lost Brother

The city of Metropolis had a new president, with a bad reputation. President Duke Red was now hated throughout the entire city, because of the destruction and chaos caused by the fall of the Ziggurat. Despite his bad reputation, he still had a few power left. Most of his power declined after the loss of his scientists and the Ziggurat. Too make matters worse, Duke Red didn't even get any help from Mayor Leon. Metropolis, the most advanced city of the world, was losing their leaders.  
******  
Kenichi and the robots arrived at the old factory, but something was missing.  
"Tima!" Kenichi ran to the spot where they had left her.  
"This. . .this can't be happening!" Kenichi fell to his knees. His vision became blurry, and he could feel the tears fall down his cheeks and onto his hands. Even though FI-FI tried to comfort him, Kenichi felt like he would be in grief forever.  
******  
During the sudden silence, Taiko had a flashback. He was only 4, and his brother was 5. His brother had a strange resemblance to Rock. They were running around, playing tag in the house. Suddenly Taiko found himself in a house that was completely ransacked. His parents were shot to death. Taiko raced to grab some belongings, including pictures. A large figure stood over his brother who had fallen to the ground with fright.  
He wanted to help, but instead, his feet carried him outside and into the battlefield. Humans shot robots here and there. Taiko wanted to be away from it all. He ran down an alley and crouched down, covering his ears with his eyes shut. Once he opened his eyes, he saw his neighborhood covered with robot corpse.  
"Wait." Taiko said as he searched his pockets, taking out a small, folded photo and unfolding it. He held it near Rock's face. "Wow, the resemblance is uncanny. You look like my dead brother!" Taiko said. Rock gave a look of shock.  
"What?! Let me see that!" he snatched the photo from Taiko's hands. His hands trembled at the sight of the 5 year old; he was the 5 year old. Is he really my brother? He has proof, and our stories couldn't have been coincidence. Besides, I was told that there were very few human casualties. . .everything's happening so fast. "That's impossible! Father wouldn't do that. . .or. . .would he?" Rock was now confused. The man who had raised him and had murdered his parents, lied about their death, and even lied about his brother's death as well!  
"Several years ago, Father won Duke Red's job. With that power, father was able to help robots achieve more freedom. Duke Red couldn't accept the fact that he was beaten, so he devised some human-robot war and killed our parents in the process, thus Duke Red now has the job that rightfully belonged to father. Taiko went through some facts.  
"No! It can't be!" Rock got up, clenching his fists, looking as if he were ready to kill someone.  
"Come on, it's late. Let's just get some sleep." Taiko comforted his lost brother. Rock's breathing became normal again, and released his fists. "You too." Taiko told Tima.  
Rock went to his bed, and Taiko went to his own. There were only two beds per room, leaving Tima with the couch. Rock sat on his bed and stared at Tima. The couch didn't seem very comfortable, but for some reason, Rock got up and rested on the couch. Tima gave him a puzzled look about his act of kindness and took the bed that had belonged to Rock.  
Rock realized that the only reason he hated robots was because of one lie Duke Red had told him, so he decided to let go of the grudge he had against Tima. . .well, just a little.  
"Good night!" Rock could hear his younger brother say as he switched the lights off.  
******  
Outside Taiko's room, the hotel manager was making a phone call. "Hello. I thought you might want to know that the robot that was responsible for the destruction of the Ziggurat is staying in one of our rooms. Rock is with her too. He was probably involved with the Ziggurat's destruction as well. Yes. Now would be fine." The hotel manager hung up and grinned.  
******  
Kenichi couldn't sleep. Thoughts swarmed through his head. He had lost his best friend. The question was: who could've taken Tima? He closed his eyes, and then he heard several patrolling Marduks. Silently, he got to his feet and crept up just enough to hear their conversation. "We gotta hurry. We're needed at the Shangri La hotel." a Marduk informed 2 others.  
"What for?" one of the two asked.  
"The manager reported that he had found the robot responsible for the fall of the Ziggurat. Also, it appears that Rock was in on this with her, and they're both holding some guy captive." The trio of Marduks immediately left for the hotel, followed by Kenichi.  
It sounds like Tima, but she doesn't seem capable of harming anyone. Kenichi hoped to find her.  
******  
Young Rock watched in horror as he walked in his house and found his parents dead. His brother was rummaging through boxes of photos. He saw a shadow and turned to see who it was. Duke Red stood over him. He was tearing from the sight of his dead parents. Duke Red reached out and carried Rock. As he was taken from his home, he noticed that his brother had disappeared.  
Then Rock found himself facing Duke Red. "You idiot! I'm not your father understand!"  
"I'm not your father" those words echoed in Rock's head.  
Rock woke up. It was a dream. He looked around the room. Just hours ago, he was an orphan. Now he had found his brother. He heard several people out the window and decided to see who it was.  
******  
The hotel manager met up with the Marduks outside. "Rock and the robot girl are on the 8th floor, in room 817. They also seem to be holding someone captive." The manager informed to the Marduks. "Hmph! That traitor will get his just reward." A Marduk said, loading his gun.  
******  
Rock couldn't believe it. Now his own group had turned against him. He quickly took one of Taiko's extra bags and quickly packed several things: A bottle of water and some money from Taiko's wallet. Rock, stopped packing when several old newspaper articles, spread around the table, caught his eyes. He read several of the headlines. "Race Keihama beats Duke Red in the polls." Another said, "Keihama family killed in Human-Robot War." Rock stashed the articles into the bag. Among the articles, he picked up a family portrait; the Keihama family portrait. After putting it in the bag, he climbed out the window and down the fire escape.  
******  
Marduks rushed through the hallways and floors of the Shangri La hotel. Several guests popped their heads out the doors to see what all the commotion was about. They finally reached a door marked 817. One Marduk began slamming his fist into the dark, oak door. "OPEN UP!"  
******  
Taiko woke with a startle. "W. . .what now. . .?" he asked while yawning. The banging on the door continued. "OPEN THE DOOR ROCK, OR WE'LL SHOOT IT OPEN!" Taiko heard a man on the other side shout. "Shoot it open?!" Taiko tumbled out of bed and partially opened the door with the chain still on it.  
"Hello, may I help you?" Taiko peeked through, facing a group of men in red caps. "We're the Marduks. We're here to arrest Rock and a robot girl and rescue a supposed hostage." one Maruk who seemed like the leader announced.  
Taiko quickly slammed the door shut and looked around the room. Rock was no where to be found. "Shoot!" he quickly packed his clothes and other belongings.  
"Psst! Tima wake up!" Taiko tried to wake up the sleeping humanoid. He walked towards her and bent near her ear. "WAKE UP!"  
Tima shot up and looked around. "Sorry, but we gotta go! Some Marduks are after you and Rock." Taiko (in his pajamas with a back-pack and two other bags that hung on his shoulders and diagonally across his chest) ran to the window and out into the fire escape. Tima followed and stopped to pick up an old newspaper article.  
"Excuse me. . .but I found this." she tapped Taiko's shoulder as they ran down the series of stairs. Taiko took the article.  
"This is good! Tima, keep looking for old articles. If we find them, we find Rock." Taiko hopped off the last step and followed the trail of newspaper articles.  
******  
The Marduks shot the door down and came into a room with pillows tossed on the floor, blankets misplaced and cabinets opened. "Call for back up!" one Marduk ordered, "Tell them to be on the look out for Rock and. . ." he stooped down to pick up a picture of a blonde haired girl, ". . .a robot that looks like her."  
******  
Rock raced down an alley. Exhausted, he decided to take a break and sat down near a pile of junk. Suddenly, the ground collapsed beneath him. He let out a small cry as he plunged into the sewage.  
******  
Taiko and Tima picked up more newspaper articles as they continued following the trail. They soon found themselves in an alley. Taiko raced forward while Tima trailed behind. A hobo nearby was scouring a trashcan for food. He tossed the lid aside, hitting Tima and knocking her off her feet. She fell down a hole, and the hobo heard a splash behind him.  
Taiko made his way out into the bustling streets of Metropolis. He turned and expected to find Tima, but the humanoid was nowhere in sight. "Damn it!" 


	3. Manhunt

"Tima!" Taiko heard a boy's voice from across the street. He looked around the crowd and saw a boy cup his hands over his mouth, "Tima!" he could hear him yell out. The boy had a red shirt, khaki shorts, and a green, checkered coat. Taiko ran across the street and towards the boy.  
"Hey, you know Tima?" Taiko asked the boy. He nodded in reply.  
"How do you know Tima?" the boy asked him.  
"My master's the one who created her. I found her metallic skeleton and decided to bring her back." Taiko answered.  
"Then you know where she is?" Taiko could see the boy's face light up.  
"No. We were being chased by Marduks and got separated." Taiko answered. The boy's smile faded away. Then, Taiko realized that this was the boy that Tima was talking about earlier the other day.  
"Are you Kenichi?" Taiko asked.  
"Uh huh. How do you know my name?" Kenichi asked this stranger.  
"Tima told me all about you. Now, come on. We have to find her before the Marduks do." Taiko started running off.  
"Wait up!"  
Taiko stopped and waited for Kenichi to catch up. "By the way, what's your name?" Kenichi asked, catching his breath.  
"Taiko Keihama."  
"Nice to meet you."  
"Same here. Now, let's go! We gotta hurry!"  
******  
Rock felt his back soaked in sewage water and slowly opened his eyes. He saw two green eyes right in front of his face. It was Tima! Both were startled and backed away several feet. Minutes passed, but none of them had spoken a word yet. Finally, Rock got up and started walking.  
"You can stay here and let the Marduks catch you, or we can get out of here and do something about it." Rock told her as he continued walking.  
Tima began following Rock, but making sure to keep a good distance away from him. They both walked through the sewers in silence. Only the splashing of their feet against the sewer waters could be heard.  
"Just because we're both running away from the Marduks doesn't mean we're friends or anything. You got that?" Rock informed her and looked back to see her nod in reply. Eventually, they made their way through the zones and finally made it back to the main level. "We should go get something to disguise ourselves." Rock suggested as he searched several stores. He entered one and came back out.  
"Aren't you coming in?" he asked Tima, who was still waiting outside the store. After several seconds of silence, Rock sighed. "It's not my fault if the Marduks catch you out here." he went back into the store. Soon, Tima went inside.  
There were clothes everywhere. Tima wandered around in amazement. When she had wandered around Metropolis with Kenichi, they had never gone into stores. She saw parents checking clothes for the little ones and some everyday thieves shoplifting. Tima noticed several stalls; fitting rooms. Curious, Tima went closer to examine them. When she came to the 3rd stall, a hand came out and pulled her in. It was Rock, who had several clothes hung over his shoulder.  
"Okay, we'll just put these on and we can go back outside." Rock handed her a leather jacket, leather boots (knee length), a skirt, and a pair of sunglasses. Tima stared at the clothes for a moment and then the floor, where price tags had fallen after being cut off.  
"If it makes you feel better, we can keep your old clothes in the bag." Rock placed his hands on his hips, indicating that he was losing his patience.  
Tima began to unbutton her shirt. She knew that when she had changed her clothes, Kenichi would close his eyes, but Rock on the other hand stared at her.  
"What are you doing?! Go to the other stall!" Rock led her out to the stall next to his and quickly left to change. Rock's cheeks were turning red. Seeing a girl undress in front of him was a first-time experience for Rock. He took his mind off the topic and began to dress up.  
Tima came out of the fitting room and waited for Rock while she held the sunglasses. Rock came out of the other fitting room. He was dressed in black as well: leather jacket, black pants, black boots, black baseball cap, and a pair of sunglasses to top it off. He stared at Tima for a while.  
"Aren't you gonna put those on?" Rock asked her, referring to the sun glasses that she was still holding. Tima slowly placed the sun glasses on her ears, and for the first time since she had seen him again, he grinned. "That's better. Now let's go."  
******  
Taiko and Kenichi were still wandering around in hopes of finding Tima and (In Taiko's point of view) Rock. They could see Marduks patrolling almost every alley. The two were now in the marketplace.  
"Taiko, what's going on?" Kenichi was slightly confused about the mass number of Marduks going around Metropolis.  
"They assume that both Rock and Tima are criminals." Taiko passed a food stand where a large tanned man worked.  
"Can we eat something first? I'm hungry." Kenichi took a seat at a nearby table. "That way, you can explain to me on how she became a criminal."  
Taiko couldn't help but smile at Kenichi. It was just like a little kid to get tired and exhausted after only a couple of hours' work.  
"Okay." Taiko got up to the tanned man and looked at the menu.  
"So, what'll it be?" he asked, while is round sunglasses reflected a bit of sunlight.  
"Two hotdogs please." Taiko ordered.  
"That'll be 4.95."  
Taiko searched his pockets and took out his wallet. After opening it, he realized that most of his money was taken away. Rock had taken some before he left the hotel last night. Luckily, he had enough money to pay for the food and sat down with Kenichi.  
"So, how did Tima turn into a criminal?" Kenichi asked, his voice a bit muffled after taking a large bite.  
"The Marduks probably think it's because she was the one responsible for destroying the Ziggurat." Taiko opened a pack of ketchup and squeezed it onto his hotdog.  
"But it was Duke Red's fault!" Kenichi shot up from his chair.  
"Calm down Kenichi. Don't you think I know that already?" Taiko finally took a bite of his hotdog.  
Kenichi sat back down.  
"We better find them before the Marduks do." Kenichi took another bite.  
"Don't worry, we will." Taiko assured his young companion.  
******  
Rock and Tima walked side by side, but kept a good distance away from each other. A group of Marduks passed by, not showing the slightest hint of suspicion in them. Rock couldn't help but chuckle at their stupidity. He immediately stopped laughing when he saw Tima.  
"Hold onto my arm. We have to look like a couple or something. We don't want to blow our cover too soon." Rock commanded.  
"But they didn't notice us, so aren't we fine like this?" Tima asked.  
"If you want to go your separate ways then leave! If you're going to stay with me then you'll have to follow my orders!" Rock raised his voice.  
Tima new that she couldn't last long by herself, so she obeyed his orders and wrapped her arms around his arm. They both walked closer together.  
"Don't worry. . .you don't have to hold on to me after we find a good hiding spot." Rock stared at Tima and new that she was frightened of both the Marduks and himself. For some reason, Rock didn't want Tima to be afraid of him anymore.  
******  
Taiko and Kenichi had finished their snacks and were now in the same store that Tima and Rock had been in. Kenichi wandered around to search for clues while Taiko headed over to the clerk.  
"Have you seen two people? A brown-haired guy and a blonde-haired girl?" he asked the clerk.  
"Why yes of course! They left the store about an hour ago. I think they stole some clothes from here." she answered.  
"Thank you." Taiko headed for the doors.  
"Kenichi!" he called out, "Let's go!"  
"Taiko, how are gonna stop the Marduks from finding Tima?" Kenichi trailed behind Taiko.  
Taiko stopped. An idea had just came up.  
"We have to find Duke Red. He'll help us destroy the Marduk Party." Taiko answered and continued walking.  
"Oh, I get it. Duke Red founded the Marduk Party, so when we find him, he'll help us get rid of them." Kenichi restated the facts.  
"Exactly."  
******  
Tima and Rock decided the best hiding spots were in the lower zones. As they ventured through the alleys filled with robot body parts, Rock could feel Tima's grip on his arm grow tighter.  
"It's okay. Those anti-robot groups won't hurt you." Rock assured her.  
He felt Tima's grip loosen a bit. Rock didn't realize it, but he was slowly gaining an attachment to Tima and slowly losing his grudges against her.  
They continued walking, making their way past several bars. A few drunk people, mostly Marduks, were following them. Feeling a bit uneasy, Rock quickened his pace while Tima did the same. Both of them could hear the drunks' footsteps quicken as well. Soon, Tima and Rock broke into a run and the drunk Marduks followed. Some of the Marduks took out their guns and began shooting. They all cheered and shouted as they shot every where. Clearly they had a bit too much to drink.  
A couple of onlookers decided to help Tima and Rock. Strangely enough, they too had guns. They ran behind the Marduks and shot them down down one by one and began beating them for a while. Tima and Rock stopped to turn around and watch. These people who had saved them from the Marduks were most likely associated with Atlas.  
"You guys alright?" the one with the sunglasses and beanie asked.  
"Yeah, thanks." Rock answered.  
"If you guys run into any more trouble with the Marduks, we'll be right here." the man raised his thumb.  
"Well. . .we do have one problem." Rock mentioned.  
"What is it?" A red-haired man with a patch on one of his eyes asked.  
"We need a place to stay. The Marduks are after us." Rock answered.  
"That's fine with us." the man with the beanie replied, "Besides, we're trying to get more members, so we'll be able to destroy the Marduk party."  
"Weren't you against robots?" Tima asked them.  
"Not any more. Our biggest threat is the Marduk party. We've turned from an anti-robot group to an anti-Marduk group." the red-haired man answered.  
"We better get going now." the man with the beanie said as he led them all to their home in the slums.  
"By the way, what are your names?" he asked while they walked along the narrow paths.  
"I'm. . .I'm Rocky." Rock made up a name, because he was once a Marduk; a leader of the Marduk.  
"And I'm Tima." Tima remembered that the last time she met this group, she had never given them her name, so she'd be safe.  
"Well I'm Zacharriah, but call me Zack." The red-haired man introduced himself.  
"And he's Damien." Zack pointed to the man with the beanie that was in the front of the group.  
"We're here!" Damien stopped.  
They all looked around and saw houses made of metal scraps. Graffiti was everywhere, but the gloomy looking area was brightened by a few rays of sunlight that were able to reach the slums. This was the home of the group once led by Atlas.  
******  
Taiko and Kenichi reached a tall building. The gates weren't guarded by Marduks, but regular members of the Metropolis Police Force.  
"I guess Duke Red doesn't rely on the Marduks anymore." Taiko said as they neared the gates.  
"We're here to see Duke Red." Taiko informed the guards.  
The guards began searching them for weapons and such. They found nothing and permitted them entrance.  
"The President will be on the top floor." one of the guards told them.  
The lobby was very bright. Redwood furniture was found all over the place. They made their way into the elevator. Nobody else was in there.  
"How come they let us in so easily?" Kenichi asked.  
"The Duke Red became very unpopular after the fall of the Ziggurat. Not a lot of people visit him." Taiko answered.  
Kenichi couldn't help but feel sorry. He remembered Duke Red as a very famous and popular figure in Metropolis. Now he was the most hated person in Metropolis.  
They felt the elevator stop at the fiftieth floor. The elevator doors slid open and revealed another bright room. The first thing that caught their eyes was a desk that was place in front of the entrance to the balcony. They saw a tall figure behind the desk, standing in the balcony; President Duke Red. 


	4. An Upcoming War

"Here's your room." Damien opened a door that led to a bluish room with one source of light.  
Tima and Rock followed Damien inside. Tima immediately recognized the place. It was the same room that Atlas had let Kenichi and her stay in after being chased by Rock and the Marduks.  
"Sorry, it's kinda messy. It hasn't been used since these other two kids came by." Damien scratched the back of his head.  
"Nah, it'll do." Rock assured him.  
Tima looked around the room and found a table with newspaper covering the entire surface. The name "Kenichi" was scribbled onto all of them with only one paper containing all the letters of the alphabet. These guys hadn't even cleaned the room since they left for the revolution.  
"If you need anything, I'll be at the other room." Damien told them both as he left through the door.  
Tima knelt down beside the table and took a used red crayon and stared at the alphabet for a moment. Rock, curious, walked beside her and watched what she was doing. Tima acted as if he wasn't there and began writing Kenichi's name on one sheet of newspaper.  
******  
Taiko and Kenichi waited where they were while President Duke Red turned around to face them. He immediately recognized Kenichi, and showed it with a look of shock.  
"Y-you!" he pointed at Kenichi, "What are you doing here?"  
"Please excuse us for coming here without an appointment or anything, but we need to discuss a very important matter." Taiko immediately went to the topic at hand.  
"And may I ask who you are?" President Duke Red's expression of shock turned to both annoyance and anger.  
"Taiko." Taiko tried to avoid telling him his last name. Besides, President Duke Red was the man who had his parents killed and took his brother away from him.  
"I assume you have a last name, unless you're an orphan." President Duke Red crossed his arms.  
"Keihama." Kenichi answered not knowing about the issue of the death of Taiko's parents.  
President Duke Red's angered and annoyed face turned back to shock, "Kei. . .Keihama?!"  
President Duke Red backed away from them several steps, "Let me guess, one of you has a gun in your hand. You plan on assassinating me for revenge."  
"No Mr. President. We've come to talk about the Marduks." Taiko walked towards President Duke Red.  
"What about them?" President Duke Red continued to back away until he reached his desk.  
"Since you're the one in charge of the Marduk Party, we'd like to ask you if you can. . .well. . .destroy it." Taiko answered.  
". . .Yes. . .I know about the Marduk problem. The thing is they've gotten out of control and have turned into some kind of street gang. . .I lost control of them after the fall of the Ziggurat. . ." President Duke Red informed the two boys with a tone of regret, "I'm terribly sorry. I too wish for nothing more than to destroy the party myself."  
"Oh. . ." Taiko stared at his feet with a look of disappointment, "We're sorry for bothering you. . ." Taiko began to walk for the elevator, followed by Kenichi.  
"Wait!" President Duke Red called after them, "There's always another way."  
******  
"Is Kenichi all you can write? Can you even spell your own name?" Rock asked Tima. She had been writing his name for the past thirty minutes and Rock was getting sick and tired of it.  
"Here. Let me show you how to write your name." Rock began as he took the red crayon from Tima's hand.  
"T. . .I. . .M. . .A. Tima!" Rock circled the letters on the paper with the alphabet and handed Tima the crayon.  
Tima began writing her name over and over again. Then, while she wrote her name for the seventh time, she looked up at Rock.  
"How do you spell your name?" she asked.  
Rock was taken aback. Why had she asked about his name? Had she developed feelings for him too?  
"Umm. . .like this. . ." Rock took the crayon from Tima's hand once more as he began circling the letters that spelled his name, "R. . .O. . .C. . .K. Rock."  
"Rock. . ." Tima repeated after he handed the crayon back to her.  
Rock continued to watch Tima spell his name after hers reading "Tima Rock Tima Rock" in his mind over and over. Why was she spelling only their names? What about Kenichi's? Probably because she wanted to perfect the new names she had learned. . .well. . .that was what Rock told himself.  
Tima stopped her work and looked back at Rock who was still watching her progress.  
"Thank you. . ." she said as she stared back at the newspapers covered with "Tima Rock Tima Rock."  
"It was nothing. . ." Rock replied as he rested on a bed nearby.  
He continued to watch Tima perfect her spelling.  
******  
"What do you mean another way?" Taiko asked.  
"They're just an ordinary street gang now. We just put them in jail." President Duke Red answered with a grin.  
"Yeah, but the Marduks are more superior than the Metropolis Police Force in a lot of ways; including their skills with guns." Taiko knew that the Marduks weren't going to go to jail that easily.  
"We might even have another war in Metropolis." Kenichi added.  
"I'm afraid it might turn out that way. . ." President Duke Red placed a hand on his chin.  
"Why?" Kenichi asked.  
"Just because I'm not famous doesn't mean I don't have information on this great city. I've heard rumors of a group that plans on wiping out all the Marduks. They might even go to war with them." President Duke Red informed them.  
"A war between the two biggest gangs of Metropolis. . ." Taiko repeated.  
"Civilians are going to get hurt. . ." Kenichi thought out loud.  
"Can you tell us more about these two gangs?" Taiko asked.  
"Well the Marduk Party was founded by me of course. After the fall of the Ziggurat, they were leaderless or. . .they didn't have a good leader. They turned into a violent gang harming robots and those who help them. The gang once led by Atlas is now known as Atlas's Soldiers. They help people, even robots, who have suffered at the hands of the Maruk Party." President Duke Red answered.  
"What can we do? Watch both gangs tear each other apart?" Kenichi asked.  
"No. . .we will support Atlas's Soldiers." President Duke Red stepped out into the balcony and stared at the sky.  
******  
"Hey, Damien told me to give these to you guys, just in case you were getting bored." Zack tossed some video tapes onto the floor. Rock got up from the bed and examined each one.  
"Sorry, most of them are pretty old." Zack apologized as he left the room.  
"Wanna watch a movie?" Rock asked Tima who was still writing their names.  
Tima got up after kneeling down near the table for so long and sat next by Rock. She looked at the titles of the three movies: Outsiders, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and Gone With the Wind. Tima picked up Gone With the Wind and examined it. It caught her attention because of the picture on the cover: A man and a woman were together.  
"You wanna watch that?" Rock made a face.  
Tima nodded a "yes" and Rock sighed as he got up and turned on the television. He switched it to video and turned the VHS on. Thankfully the tape had been rewind, so he inserted it into the VHS and sat down near Tima.  
  
Rock didn't like the movie a lot. He wasn't big about drama. He preferred action or comedy. Tima, on the other hand, seemed greatly interested. When it got to the first kiss scene Tima looked very curious.  
"Rock what are they doing?" Tima asked.  
Rock didn't really like these "mushy" topics but decided to answer anyway, "They're kissing."  
"Kissing?" Tima was still confused.  
"It's something two people do if they really like each other. You've heard of love right? It's how two people express their love for each other." Rock had to admit; for someone who didn't like "mushy" topics, he seemed to know a lot about love.  
"So I can kiss you?" Tima asked.  
"WHAT?!" Rock thought in his head. Tima had surprised him many times, like the time she almost completely undressed in front of him. Now she told him that she like him? Then again, Rock had to admit that he hoped something like this would happen, but it was all too sudden. Plus, this whole thing happened right after Tima saw the two main characters kiss for the first time.  
"Man, why didn't we just watch Outsiders or something?" Rock asked himself.  
"Err. . .uh. . .let's talk about this later. . ." Rock decided to get off the topic about kissing Tima as soon as he could and just continue with the movie.  
******  
Taiko, Kenichi and President Duke Red had decided to meet up at the President's office again the next day. Once they did, they would make their way through Metropolis and join forces with Atlas's Soldiers.  
  
Night fell upon Metropolis, but the lights still kept the city brightly illuminated. Taiko and Kenichi stayed at the Shangri-La hotel. Their only source of light that they left on was the lamp near the beds. Knowing they couldn't do anything about the upcoming "war," they decided to get to know each other more. Taiko told Kenichi about his past time and how he was connected with President Duke Red, Dr. Laughton, and Rock. What surprised Kenichi the most was the fact that Taiko and Rock were related.  
"So, what about you Kenichi? How were you brought into this grand city?" Taiko showed a slight hint of sarcasm when he referred to Metropolis. He wearing a large T-shirt and a pair of shorts as his pajamas and was already in bed.  
"My uncle is a private investigator. We came from Japan in search for Dr. Laughton." Kenichi began after putting on an extra T-shirt that Taiko had let him borrow and continued with his stories of traveling through the slums with Tima while being chased by Taiko's brother, Rock.  
"At least he knows the truth about Duke Red." Taiko said once Kenichi had finished his side of the story.  
"So, what? You still have a grudge against Duke Red?" Kenichi asked moving around to get into a comfortable position in his bed.  
"I don't like holding grudges against people. Then again, he had my parents killed and lied to my brother, so yeah I do. . .just a little. . ." Taiko answered.  
"Tomorrow's a big day. . ." Kenichi didn't look the least bit excited.  
"Yeah. . .well. . .good night." Taiko turned the lamp off and closed his eyes.  
"Good night. . ."  
******  
During the rest of the movie, Rock noticed that Tima seemed a bit less interested in the movie then she was several minutes ago before asking the question on kissing. Once the movie was done Rock decided to let Tima sleep on the bed while he rested on an old, yet comfortable couch. He couldn't help but regret what he had just done about an hour ago.  
******  
Back at the Shangri-La, the same hotel manager that had called the Marduks was on the phone, most likely speaking with the Marduks again.  
"So they found some of our men dead near a bar? Hmm. . .must have been those guys from Atlas's Soldiers. How should we get back at them? Haha sounds like a plan. . .oh, does the name Kenichi sound familiar to you? I don't know. . .it does ring a bell. . .do you think he's got something to do with Rock and that robot girl? Hmm. . .okay. . .tomorrow morning would be fine. . .okay bye."  
  
Author's note: So can some of you guys think whose side the hotel manager is with? 


	5. Worldwide Gang Rumors

Note: Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Been busy with school. But enough about my problems: ON WITH THE STORY!  
  
"Hey!" Damien's voice was heard through the door.  
Rock woke up with a startle. He slowly opened his eyes and stretched as he got off from the chair. He opened the door, his eyes halfway open after suddenly waking up.  
"Sorry if I woke you up." Damien quickly apologized, "Zack and I were wonderin' what you guys want for breakfast."  
"Uh. . .anything would be fine." Rock answered, "Why?"  
"Oh, we're just gonna stop by the upper zones." Damien walked off.  
Rock thought to himself for a while. What were these guys gonna do early in the morning? Well, since they were against the Marduks, they were probably going out to confront some of them like gangs usually do. Plus, since he and Tima were on the run from them, they really couldn't do anything but hide, unless they did something about it. That was it. Rock decided to go with Damien and Zack, in hopes of being able to see some of the Marduks. If a fight were to break out, so be it. Rock would be prepared to take them out.  
"Wait!" Rock ran out of the room and after Damien.  
"What is it?" Damien turned around.  
"I'm coming too." Rock answered.  
******  
Kenichi and Taiko ate a quick breakfast before heading off to see President Duke Red.  
The hotel manager watched them leave the building before picking up the phone.  
"I heard they're going over to the President's. . .so forget about stopping by here." the hotel manager quickly reported to the Marduks after Kenichi and Taiko left.  
  
Kenichi and Taiko made it to President Duke Red, and immediately began discussion about helping out Atlas's Soldiers.  
"So first of all, where can we find them?" Taiko began.  
"In the lower zones." Duke Red answered.  
"I've been there! I'll lead the way!" Kenichi suggested.  
"Well, that's a start." Taiko smiled at the progress they had made so far.  
"Once we meet them, what'll we do next? I mean, it was an unexpected meeting." Taiko continued.  
"Is there anyway we can contact them?" Kenichi asked.  
"They live in the lower zones young man. You don't expect them to have telephones there now do you?" Duke Red gave a sort of smart-aleck response.  
"Right, so we'll just drop by and discuss some plans on how to destroy the Marduk Party." Taiko summarized.  
"There you have it! Now, shall we depart for the lower zones?" Duke Red grabbed his top hat, cape, and walking stick.  
******  
Somewhere near the President's building, Damien, Zack, and Rock wandered around the streets. They stopped by several fast-food restaurants, buying some breakfast meals for the people back in the slums. As soon as the three of them came out of a restaurant, they saw a group of Marduks heading over to the President's building.  
"Damien! The Marduks!" Zack warned.  
"What are they up to now?" Damien dropped the bag of food and took out a tommy gun as he ran towards the group.  
"Damien!" Zack dropped his back and chased after him, armed with two guns.  
"Dammit. . ." Rock dropped his bag and followed.  
******  
Kenichi, Taiko, and President Duke Red were already several yards away from the building when they noticed a large group of people heading their way. As soon as they came into view, they stopped in their tracks.  
"The Marduks!" Kenichi explained.  
"Don't stand! Run back!" Taiko sprinted back to the building, followed by Kenichi and President Duke Red.  
When they reached the entrance, the guards took out their guns, all aimed at the Marduks. That was the cue to for the Marduks to take out their fire arms. Once they did, the guards began firing at the Marduks, but they all lacked accuracy and missed every shot. The Marduks, however, had already shot down six guards. Taiko was on his knees, and he crawled over to one of the dead guards. He took the gun and immediately began firing at the Marduks, shooting down around four. When the Marduks began aiming for him, Taiko crouched lower, taking more fire arms from the dead guards. "Kenichi! Mr. President!" Taiko tossed the guns at them.  
Kenichi stared at the gun for a while. He had never shot one before, nor had he held one. President Duke Red, however, stared at the weapon with a look of disgust.  
"I have to shoot these?" President Duke Red asked Taiko, his voice drowning a bit from the sound of guns firing.  
"If you want to save your own life!" Taiko shouted back, firing his gun and shooting two more down.  
President Duke Red sighed.  
******  
"Damien! They're shooting at someone!" Zack observed as he ran behind Damien.  
"Damn! We gotta hurry!" Damien quickened his run.  
When they were a good shooting distance away from the Marduks, Damien and Zack greeted them with a hail of bullets.  
"Take that you bastards!" Damien yelled as he shot down the Marduks one by one.  
They heard a shot from behind them. When they turned to see who it was, they found Rock.  
"Glad you could make it Rocky!" Damien greeted as he continued shooting at the remaining Marduks.  
******  
On the other side of the gun fight, Taiko, Kenichi, and President Duke Red, were shooting down as many Marduks as they could. President Duke Red covered one of his ears and held his eyes shut tight as he fired another shot. The bullet ricocheted off a street light, almost hitting a passerby.  
"Damn this confounded weapon!" President Duke Red threw his gun at the Marduks in annoyance and anger.  
The gun collided onto the head of one of the Marduks, and knocked him unconscious. Taiko and Kenichi stared at the President for a while.  
"I-I didn't mean to!" President Duke Red thought that he was in trouble.  
Then they heard a shout from a Marduk.  
"Let's get outta here!" he shouted to the rest of the Marduks.  
The unwounded quickly ran out of the battlefield, carrying the badly injured, while the ones with nonfatal wounds carried themselves out.  
"I guess we won." Kenichi concluded.  
"No, we didn't win anything yet. They were only a small part of the much larger Marduk party." Taiko corrected.  
President Duke Red nodded his head in agreement.  
******  
"I guess they decided to retreat." Zack said as he put his gun away.  
"Let's go see who they were shooting at. Hopefully there weren't any casualties." Damien started running toward the President's building.  
Rock and Zack ran behind him.  
******  
"I wonder who were the people shooting the Marduks on the other side." Kenichi said.  
"I think they're coming this way." Taiko got up and walked out the gate, towards the three people running towards them, followed by Kenichi.  
"Hey, you guys okay?" Damien asked once he and the others arrived.  
"We're fine, but some of the guards were shot. We need to give them some medical treatment as soon as possible." Taiko answered.  
Taiko took a glance and saw Rock wearing all black clothes. He stared at Rock who stared back at him. Rock made some hand motions to tell Taiko not to blow his cover or anything. Taiko nodded and looked back at Damien and Zack.  
"Thanks for your help. . .you guys are. . .?" Taiko began.  
"Damien. This is Zack, and the guy behind him is Rocky." Damien finished.  
"Rocky?" Taiko repeated.  
"Yeah, we haven't decided yet, but maybe he'd like to join Atlas's Soldiers." Damien replied.  
"You're part of Atlas's Soldiers?" Kenichi asked.  
"Yup." Damien answered.  
"Mr. President! We found them!" Kenichi called out to President Duke Red who was still within the gates of the President's building.  
He came out and looked at the two members of Atlas's Soldiers and a familiar looking boy. Before he could say anything, Damien and Zack took a step back.  
"It's the President. . ." Damien glared at him.  
"Let's go back." Zack began running away.  
"Let's go Rocky." Damien ran after Zack.  
Rock looked at Damien, took a glance back at Taiko, Kenichi, and the man who had lied to him for so long, and ran after Damien and Zack.  
"Wait!" Kenichi tried to run after them but stopped after the first few steps.  
"What was that all about?" Taiko asked.  
"Common sense. I'm Duke Red. The founder of the Marduk party. Of course Altas's Soldiers would keep their distance from me. I didn't say that joining Atlas's Soldiers would be easy." President Duke Red shrugged his shoulders.  
"Well. . .I guess me and Kenichi can go look for them." Taiko began to walk towards the direction Damien, Zack, and Rock went. Kenichi quickly followed behind.  
"In that case, I'll stay behind and get some medical treatment for the wounded guards." President Duke Red said, knowing that if he came, it would lessen their chances of making an alliance with Atlas's Soldiers.  
******  
Tima woke up and found out that she was alone. She looked around the room to see if Rock was hiding. With no sign of Rock, Tima went out of the room and into the main room. There was a desk filled with newspapers. Curious, Tima walked over to take a look. The newspapers were all within the dates of the current week. She read some of the headlines.  
"Gang Rumors: Marduk Party plans on taking over Metropolis. . ." Tima's interest was suddenly perked up and she decided to read a bit more, "A strange rumor has been spread throughout all the gangs of the world. The Marduk Party supposedly has plans on taking over Metropolis; the largest and most modernized city in the world. It has been said that the Marduks will accept any help from any gang that wants to join them in taking over Metropolis. Rumor has it that the Marduks have already formed alliances with gangs from Japan, Italy, and most of the United States. . ."  
The main door swung open, and Tima immediately stopped reading and looked to see who it was. Damien, Zack, and Rock came inside.  
"Here's some breakfast we picked up at Pablo's Café." Damien handed Tima a warm paper bag.  
Tima sat down the nearest chair and opened it. She removed some freshly made pancakes, several packets of syrup, a container of butter, and a plastic fork and knife. Zack looked at the table that was covered in newspapers. He picked up the newspaper that Tima had recently read. Zack stared at Tima.  
"You read this?" he asked.  
Tima took a bite of the pancake and nodded her head.  
"Do you think that if the Marduks manage to side with all the gangs, we'll be able to defeat them?" Zack asked as he leaned against the table.  
"If you guys are able to form an alliance with a stronger power other than gangs, then you'll definitely be able to defeat them." Rock answered, "But why are you asking?"  
Zack tossed the newspaper to Rock.  
"They plan on taking over Metropolis?!" Rock was definitely surprised at the news.  
"It's just a rumor, but if they do, there's no doubt that they'll hurt the robots and some of us." Damien answered.  
"Why are you guys helping the robots? Didn't you all despise them before?" Tima asked after taking another bite.  
"Well. . .after Atlas died, we suddenly realized that robots weren't the threat to us at all. It was the government and the Marduks. So, we've turned into a pro-robot group and an anti-Marduk group." Damien answered with a small smile.  
"So, Rocky, what about that plan on forming our own alliances?" Zack asked. 


End file.
